ANTI-POVERTY GROUPS have warned an increase in electricity prices will cause further hardship to those struggling to pay bills as new figures show energy companies are cutting power to more than 1,000 households per month over non-payment of bills.
The ESB, which has 1.5 million customers, said it was having to cut the power to 30 homes a day, a 20 per cent increase on the rate of cut-offs in March.
The company said disconnection was a last resort when problems with payments arose, adding it tried to help customers by offering payment plans into which 11,000 people were entering each month. Some 99.9 per cent of customers disconnected were reconnected within 24 hours after the relevant fee was paid, it said.
Bord Gáis said it disconnected gas to approximately 230 homes per month, while a maximum of 120 households had their electricity cut. Pointing to a decline in the figures, a spokesman said: “Last year an average of 330 customers were disconnected each month, while this year it is down to 230. In July of this year, 190 were disconnected compared to 440 in July of 2009.”
Airtricity, which has 275,000 customers, said it was cutting power to 35 homes a week over non-payment of bills.
Mabs said more than 4,000 people had contacted it over problems with utility payments this year, while the Society of St Vincent de Paul said the planned rise in electricity prices in October was of “grave concern” and would “add further to the level of fuel-poverty witnessed consistently in recent years”.